Although much time is devoted to discussing tablets as important platforms for the future, the average consumer isn’t quite there yet, according to Nielsen.

In the United States, only about 5 percent of 12,000 people surveyed own a tablet, and that number is even smaller in smaller markets, the research firm has found, CrunchGear reported today. In the United Kingdom, for example, just 1.7 percent of people (or one in 60) owns a tablet device.

These figures put tablet devices behind all other wireless devices in terms of penetration.

But this isn’t to say newsmedia outlets should slow down their tablet development efforts. These devices represent the biggest commercial opportunities for media owners, based on what people are willing to pay for and what they want to consume on the devices, paidContent pointed out.

Consumers who do use tablets are more likely to accept advertising and make a purchase after seeing an ad, and also watch more video and read more books than other wireless device users, Nielsen explained.Image: Nielsen